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Being 'gay' a sin? Ron Paul can't say

Congressman on God condemning homosexuality: 'I have trouble with that'

Only months after announcing his candidacy for president, Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, declared that he could not judge homosexuality as a sin and affirmed his support for the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy – a rule the Obama administration has indicated it plans to repeal altogether.

In an interview on “The American View” on Aug. 25, 2007, host John Lofton asked Paul, “Do you believe [homosexuality] is a sin?”

“I’m not as judgmental about that probably because of my medical background, so I don’t see it in that simplistic terms,” Paul said. “I think it’s a complex issue to decide whether it is sin or other problems with the way people are born. It’s, to me, too complex to give an answer as simple as that.”

Ron Paul spokeswoman Rachel Mills told WND the congressman is a Christian and does not declare a denomination.

The Bible itself condemns homosexuality in both the Old and New Testaments. It is described as “abomination” in Leviticus 18:21, and the apostle Paul slams the practice of how “men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly …” (Romans 1:26).

Lofton then asked Paul if he believes God considers homosexuality a sin.

“Well, I believe a lot of people understand it that way, but I think everybody is God’s child, too,” he said. “So, I have trouble with that.”

The host responded, “Actually, everyone is made in the image of God, but not everyone is a child of God. Some are children of the devil. That’s what Jesus says.”

Referring to Paul’s support of the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy, Lofton asked why he wouldn’t consider “unrepentant sinners” such as homosexuals and adulterers “people with flawed character” who should be prohibited from serving in the military.

“Because I think for every homosexual problem that we have in the military, we have a heterosexual problem,” Paul said. “… [I]f we have a heterosexual that’s visiting the prostitutes on the bases – sometimes we set up the prostitutes for them – that’s, to me, so disgraceful. So, I don’t see it as being all one-sided.”

Paul said one example of heterosexual problems in the military is when female soldiers have children during their enlistment.

“I think one of the biggest problems we’re facing in the military right now is young women in the military. Then we end up with pregnancies in the military,” he said. “I see that as a heterosexual problem, and I’ll bet you, financially, that’s as big of a burden on us as any homosexual problems that we have.”

Lofton argued that the United States should seek out people with “good moral character” to serve in the armed forces. He referenced an incident in which George Washington signed an order to remove a person who was accused of attempting to commit homosexual sodomy from the Continental Army.

“Why wouldn’t you say, yeah, we’ll try to stop anyone from getting in the military who is a homosexual, who is an adulterer, who is a fornicator, and other categories that indicate a character flaw?” Lofton asked. “Why shouldn’t we try to do that?”

“They’re imperfect because we’re all imperfect, and we all sin. So, if the heterosexual or the homosexual sins, that, to me, is a category dealing with their own soul,” Paul replied. “… I sort of think that for the practicality of running a military, I just assume not know every serious thing that any heterosexual did or any homosexual did. Those flaws have to do with all our flaws because each and every one of us has had imperfections, and we all are sinners.”

Lofton said he too believes all people have sinned, but that there’s a difference between sinners who “fight their sins” and unrepentant sinners.

“[U]nrepentant homosexuals who are parading down Main Street saying they’re proud that they’re homosexuals, these are not people that are merely sinners,” he said.

Paul told Lofton that if the military is seeking people of good moral character, it must find people who don’t lie, cheat, steal, murder, beat their spouses and who take care of their children.

“If you can find people like that, they may not be perfect, but they would be of moral character, they could be in our military,” he said. “Of course, what we’re doing in our military now and with our foreign policy, we’re desperate for people. We’re putting anybody and everybody in. … I think this is one of the reasons we end up with people in the military doing things that are rather despicable that have nothing to do with their sexual orientation.”

Lofton replied, “Well, one thing’s for sure, and I believe this as a Christian: God will not bless an army or a military that’s full of unrepentant, practicing homosexuals and adulterers and fornicators.”